What’s Next for Darius Rucker? Seeing the Taj Mahal, Mentoring Young Artists

With many musical milestones -- both as a country star and with his rock group Hootie & the Blowfish -- already under his belt, Darius Rucker says that he's setting his sights on a broader array of bucket-list items. Many of those plans, the country star explained to The Boot and other outlets during a recent media event, involve making memories with his son, Jack.

This year, for example, Rucker headed across the pond for his Fall 2018 UK tour, which kicked off on Oct. 21. Prior to the run, he said he was looking forward to taking his son to see historical landmarks.

"We're going to see everything. I'm going to see everything again -- Big Ben, all that stuff," the singer explains. "The thing I'm looking forward to most, the thing I love the most, is the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. It's truly mind-blowing. You study all that stuff in school as a kid, but when you walk in and see all those paintings, it's pretty unbelievable."

One of the items on his bucket list, Rucker has said, is skydiving with his son, but the logistics of that particular adventure are still in the works. "He said he wants to do it for his 18th birthday, but I'm like, 'Dude, I'm going to be 57!'" the singer relates. "But that's still on our list of things we want to do together."

Rucker says that the list is about spending time with his son, but it's also about fulfilling some of his own childhood dreams. "It's just cool to think of, as a kid, all the things I wanted to do," he continues. "You know, like, I want to see the Taj Mahal. That's one of those things that you let go, and now I'm like, 'Man, I should go see the Taj Mahal.'"

As for music, Rucker says he's excited to keep releasing songs and performing. He hopes to make "Hands on Me," from his When Was the Last Time album, his next single. "The song is my next single, yes. I don't care what they say. It's a great song," the singer says with a laugh.

Rucker is grateful for all he's been able to accomplishment, and he's just as focused on passing the lessons he's learned forward to deserving young artists as he is on releasing new music of his own these days. "I know how lucky I got," he explains. "I mean, you gotta have talent, but there's a lot of people out there with talent that never make it. So for now, I'm that 35- or 45-year-old quarterback that was doing Super Bowls, and now my career is winding down, and I want to go play golf somewhere. Some of these [younger artists] come up, have questions, or need some help touring or playing shows -- I mean, yeah, that's what I'm supposed to do."